Search - Franz Liszt, Maurice Ravel, Claude Debussy :: Lazar Berman Edition (Box Set)

Berman: Underrated Giant

Ian Altman | Athens, GA | 01/13/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Lazar Berman is perhaps the most underrated of the giants of the 20th century. He was at once held in awe for his staggering technique and castigated for letting his "fingers outrun his brains," to borrow Horowitz's description of Simon Barere. Few seem to care for his Beethoven, for his is a perfectly un-Brendelian, un-Serkinian, un-Pollinian, and un-Kempfian approach. He puts what I like to call the "Berman mojo" on it, and the results are fascinating. Nonintellectual? Maybe, according to the German tradition. But why do so many think that is the only way to do it, anyway? The usual answer, "Because we should serve the composer's wishes," begs the question. Was Beethoven a god or a man like the rest of us? I say let Berman have his say: at the very least, there is something there to disagree with, as opposed to the various attempts simply to play what is written on the page without interpreting it, as if that is not already an interpretive choice.



Then, of course there is his Liszt, for which he is justly respected. Who has ever heard the F minor Transcendental Etude performed so intensely as in this recording from the mid 50s (even before the famous complete set on the Melodyia label)? It is like a well controlled strike of lightning. (Unfortunately, the recording omits two bars in the lead-up to the recapitulation. It sounds like a tape editing error. Possibly a memory slip? Berman makes his point well enough anyway.) The Dante Sonata, the Spanish Rhapsody, and various others, are hair raising. The 1956 recording of the B minor Sonata is a revelation. Very few pianists hold that piece together structurally as well as Berman, and none can match his technique in it. Not even Horowitz played the octaves in the final transformation of the main subject like Berman.



Also of great interest, particularly to pianists, will be Berman's Chopin etudes, since he was not well known as a Chopin player. In the Octave Etude, he again gives the Berman mojo, especially in the slower middle section, simply and beautifully played, contrasted perfectly with the earth-shattering violence of the outer sections. In many ways, his Winter Wind etude is reminiscent of the old Josef Lhevinne recording, which, to my mind, is a good thing. It is fast and furious but never out of control. But perhaps the two that will be most interesting to other pianists are the opus 10 no. 2 in a minor, and the opus 25 no. 6 in d-flat major. I have never heard the former, with the chromatic scales played with the weaker fingers of the right hand, played so fleetly, even by Ashkenazy. And the latter, all double sixths, is light and perfectly phrased, yet over in less than a minute. Having played that piece for years, I could only smile and accept it.



Not all of the performances show Berman at his best. The Prokofiev 8th Sonata, taken from a live concert in the early 1980s, is rather on the slow side. (Compare it to his studio recording with Deutche Gramophon, or, indeed, to Richter's performances.) But it is still of interest, as are the Romeo and Juliet pieces and the violin sonata recorded with his son, Pavel. None are definitive, but all are worth your time.



There is more to the set, and all of it is wonderful. The overall impression is of a pianistic and musical giant. Most who payed attention to music in the 20th century already knew of Berman's pianism. I suggest you listen again, and try to follow Berman's thinking. There is much there worthy to be understood."

Berman the magnificent . . .

Valerie Scruggs | Alexandria, Va | 04/11/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Lazar Berman was one of the greatest pianist of this - or any - generation. His flawless technique and firm control of his instrument provided him easy access to the whole of the Classical, Romantic, Impressionistic and Neo-Classical repertoire. But like Michelangeli, Berman, instead, seemed to feel more at home in a select number of compositions.



In the performances gathered together in this box, we see just how successful Berman was in these particular pieces. He plays them all, regardless of the composer, with the same fire and poetry that define his craft. He is, throughout, in top form.



This box is a living, breathing testament to his art that on no account should be overlooked by any pianophile. For those of us who relish the transcendental in art, this is like discovering the Lost Ark on a daily basis. Enjoy."

Another great pianist from Russia

S.K.Leung | Hong Kong | 10/03/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Berman perhaps was the least known Russian pianist of the last century. He demonstrates power and passion in his interpretaions which let me think of Soloman of U.K. when I first heard him playing. This box set includes a variety of works played by Berman in his Russian times and is an interesting comparison with his later Western issues say with DGG.

When talking about Berman, another great Russian pianist who is even less known to the West is Nikolai Petrov and he is real good too!"